


Locked Out, Lucked Out

by karukagexp



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-17
Updated: 2017-11-17
Packaged: 2019-02-03 12:32:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12748380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karukagexp/pseuds/karukagexp
Summary: Merlin’s locked out of his apartment with no phone just as the fall weather is starting to feel like winter. His only solution? To venture across the street to the Tea Shop with a very handsome owner...





	Locked Out, Lucked Out

_Shit. Fuck._ Merlin cursed under his breath. Of course he would pick the coldest day of Fall thus far to get locked out of his apartment building.

In normal apartment buildings, you could enter the lobby and even go upstairs, perhaps the only initial security being a doorman. But nooooo Merlin had to listen to his paranoid brain and pick the apartment where the only way to get into the building was with a fob because it was safer.

Merlin cursed louder this time and reached for the door hoping that a miracle would occur and he would be able to open the door. No such luck. His head flopped forward and leant on the glass door. When he opened his eyes, he surveyed what he was wearing: blue pajama pants, a soft grey t-shirt, and thin socks. When he brought his trash downstairs, he didn’t think it would be an issue. Just like he didn’t think it an issue if he left his apartment unlocked while he went downstairs to toss the garbage bags out. He didn’t anticipate that his foot would move just an inch too far causing the door to shut behind him.

Merlin sighed and glanced at the elevator. It was just a door away. He stared at the unmoving, red 1, which he could swear was mocking him, willing it to move, to indicate that there was someone coming to his aid, to open the door and let him back into the warmth of the lobby. At the thought of it, his body shuddered. No keys, no phone, wearing pajamas, just before the sun went down in 39 degree weather.

“It’ll be so embarrassing if I die like this.” Merlin muttered to himself as he backed away from the glass and began to pace both to keep his body warm and to quell the panic stirring inside him. 

“Okay, Merlin, think. No phone, no keys, how are we going to get inside? We could wait it out. Someone will have to show up eventually. But, we don’t know who or when they will be here. You could be dead by then.” _Let’s not think about that just now._

“Okay we could ask to borrow someone’s phone, but that would be weird especially since I probably look homeless right now.” He glanced at his unshaven face covered by unbrushed hair. The result of a productive day off. He glanced at the street and saw numerous cars go by. Rush hour had begun. The wind picked up and his shivering intensified. He steadied himself and walked around the building to the garage. It was a little warmer here, but not by much. It just protected him against the wind. He looked towards the street and saw the quaint tea shop he hadn’t had the opportunity to acquaint himself with yet. _You’re such a liar. You’re just too afraid of making a fool of yourself in front of the hot blonde owner._ They were still open, but it appeared that they had no customers. They must be closing soon.

Ignoring the anxiety welling up in his abdomen, Merlin forced his legs to move, noticing that he couldn’t feel his feet hit the pavement. He ran across the street, weaving between stopped cars and walked briskly up to the entrance. His hand hesitated, and it was then that he noticed his hand shaking. _Nerves?_ “Cold.” He replied to the voice in his head. He pushed the door open and walked inside.

The warmth and smell of floral tea immediately hit him and he sighed in relief. 

“Can I... er... help you?” A voice spoke from behind the counter. Merlin’s eyes darted up and found blue staring back at him. It was the owner.

“Er... yeah. I’m living across the street and I accidentally locked myself out of my apartment complex and I left my phone inside. Can I use your phone?”

The man blinked but then took in his appearance and seemed to come to the conclusion that he must be telling the truth. He nodded and the anxiety in his chest loosened somewhat.

The man handed him his unlocked cell-phone and Merlin took it gratefully. He typed in the number he was smart enough to have memorized when he signed the lease. As it dialed, Merlin turned to look at the menu of teas, not really reading any of them.

“‘Ello?”

“Hi, this is Merlin. I’ve been locked out of my apartment and I can’t get inside. Could you come open it up?”

“Yeah alright.” The man did not sound happy. “I’m pretty far outside of town, since I’m visiting the city today, but I can be there in two hours.”

“Two hours?! It’s freezing outside! What am I supposed to do for two hours?!”

“I dunno. But I can’t get there any faster unless you’ve got some sort of magic time machine,” the man grumbled. Yeah. Definitely not happy.

Merlin shook his head, “I’m sorry, you’re right. Whenever you can get here would be great. Thanks.” Merlin hit the end button and handed the phone back to its rightful owner.

“Thanks.” He sighed. What was he supposed to do for two hours waiting for the manager to show up?

“So what kind of name is Merlin anyways?” The man asked, apparently amused. 

“Mine. My childhood was not a happy one, let me tell you.” He responded. He didn’t meet the man’s eyes but instead looked outside at all the people in their wonderfully warm-looking winter coats. The sound of a cup on wood woke him from his reverie of despair. He turned around to find a warm cup of tea sitting just inches from his own hand. He looked at the man and saw that he had a cup of his own and was moving around the bar to a nearby table. 

“Care to join me?” Arthur asked, smiling and watching Merlin gawk at him.

Merlin was frozen, admiring the toned muscles hidden underneath his blue button-down shirt. He snapped back to reality, “I can’t pay.”

“Well next time you come around perhaps you’ll give me an extra tip, then.” He chuckled. Merlin blinked and his stomach did a tiny half-backflip at the idea of seeing him again.

“Thanks.” He grabbed the ceramic mug and moved to sit across from him and sipped. It was a smooth floral white tea and was only lightly sweetened. He closed his eyes. A perfect cup. He hummed and put both of his still-cold hands around the warmth of the mug and smiled a quiet smile. When he opened his eyes, he saw the blue eyes twinkling back at him.

“What?”

“Oh- it’s.. it’s nothing. I just enjoy seeing customers really enjoying tea rather than just gulp it down.”

“It’s the only level of respect a superior cup of tea deserves.”  
They both sipped their tea quietly, leaving an awkward silence between them.

“So...” Merlin said, breaking the silence “What’s your name? I’ve just been thinking of you as h- blonde man in my head. Somehow I don’t think that’s your name.” Merlin silently praised his tongue for not slipping the “hot” out.

He laughed a booming laugh, throwing his head back. “I’m Arthur. Good to meet you Merlin.”

From there they talked about each other, how Arthur began his business despite his father’s wishes and how Merlin was studying medieval history at the local university. 

“Seems like a good path for someone named Merlin.”

“I do tend to get a lot of Arthurian jokes. Hey maybe you should join me!”

After a while Merlin looked around the shop confused.

“Why aren’t there any customers?”

Arthur’s lips curled into a smile, “Well, the shop is actually closed. It was when you walked in too, but I had neglected to lock the door.”

Merlin felt his cheeks redden in embarrassment. He had kept Arthur here for an hour and a half past closing just so he wouldn’t freeze to death.

“Oh my God I am so sorry. I had no idea. I’m a bit of a dunce and I must have missed the sign or something-“

“Merlin.”

“I shouldn’t keep you from going home that’s more than a bid rude-“

“Merlin”

“I can survive 30 minutes outside, really-“

_“Merlin.”_

“Yes?”

“Shut up.”

Merlin snapped his mouth closed and swallowed. As he was breathing to apologize, Arthur cut him off, “It’s fine. Don’t worry. If I didn’t want you here, I would have kicked you out. As it happens, I find I like your company. I don’t have to rush home. It’s not like there’s anyone waiting for me anyway.” The last statement was grumbled bitterly and Merlin was surprised to hear the sullen tone.

“Break up recently?”

“Yeah. He had moved in with me but I soon realized how much of an asshole he was and so I broke it off. I’m glad for it, but it’s still odd coming home to an empty place.”

“I understand” Merlin replied quietly, thinking of his own apartment and how large it sometimes felt, even though it was only made for one person. 

They stared at their cups for a minute and when Merlin looked up he saw Arthur looking at him. There was something in his eyes: a sort of curious fondness.

“What?” Merlin demanded feeling a bit nervous at Arthur staring at him so intimately.

“I was just wondering if maybe you’d like to get some dinner with me.”

Merlin blinked in shock. Arthur. Hot Blonde Tea Shop Owner. He wanted to get dinner with Merlin?

It took a second for Merlin to realize he hadn’t spoken and noticed the embarrassed flush on Arthur’s face and his expression seemed to droop slightly.

Merlin closed the mouth he didn’t know was open.

“Yeah. Sounds nice.”

Arthur perked up immediately and let out a breath in relief. “Great. Where do you want to go?”

“Wait, now?”

“Yeah, why not! I haven’t eaten and you look like you could always eat more” Arthur said eyeing his torso and stomach. Even if it was only an appraising look, Merlin could feel the beginnings of arousal churn in his lower belly. He mentally hit save on the moment for later use and moved on.

“I’m not really wearing the right kind of clothes for a date.”

Arthur blinked and then chuckled. “You know, for a moment I forgot why you came in here in the first place.”

Merlin smiled. So had he. When he glanced at the clock on the wall behind Arthur, Merlin realized that the manager would be at the building any second.

“I should go and wait outside for the manager.”

“Do you still want to get dinner?”

Merlin paused at that. He looked at Arthur, pretending to consider before responding, “Alright yeah, I guess.” He said in a joking manner, pretending that going out with a hot man was a chore. “I still need to change though.”

Arthur stood up and brought their two cups to the sink and left them there. He took off his apron and grabbed his coat and they both walked outside. Merlin had forgotten how cold it had been and just as he was about to put his arms around himself, he felt a coat cover his shoulders. He glanced over at Arthur, who was placing it on Merlin. Merlin raised an eyebrow at him.

“What? You’re the one in pajamas. You certainly need the coat more than I do right now.”

Merlin smiled and said nothing. They crossed the street and stood outside the front entrance. Their banter continued for a few minutes before a man walked up to the door.

“You Merlin?”

“Yeah that’s me!”

He swiped his fob in front of the door and it clicked. Merlin immediately opened it and shouted his thanks to the man who had already begun walking away, grumbling about a fee as he went. Merlin shot a glance and a shrug at Arthur who returned the look in kind and they both walked upstairs.

 _Thank God I’m not a slob. Otherwise this would be embarrassing._ Merlin thought as he opened his apartment door. They both walked inside and Merlin gestured for Arthur to sit on the couch while he moved towards his bedroom.

“This is some kind of record for me, you know.” Merlin yelled from around the corner as he slipped jeans on and traded his t-shirt out for a nicer, long-sleeved shirt and a cardigan.

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve never been able to get a man into my apartment this fast before.” He heard a chuckle from the next room and felt himself smile at hearing it. Merlin found it to be a pleasant noise and wanted to hear it more often.

 _Sap_ his inner voice opined. He walked out of his bedroom holding his phone and gestured toward the door.

“Shall we?”

“We shall.” Arthur said as he stood up. Merlin didn’t move as he watched Arthur slowly stretch the kinks in his body, caused by being on his feet for most of the day. The small stretch of skin that revealed itself when Arthur moved his arms up drew Merlin’s eye and he found himself wetting his lips. He caught himself doing this and looked up. Arthur saw it. He smirked. As he slowly lowered his arms and walked up to Merlin, all the air went out of Merlin’s lungs. When Arthur got close enough that they were sharing body heat, Merlin found he couldn’t look away from Arthur’s pink lips.

“Since we are doing things out of order anyways,” Arthur began in a low voice that Merlin could feel more than hear. He never finished his sentence. Instead he grasped Merlin’s hips and tilted his head slightly upwards so that their lips brushed. It was chaste, but had passion and desire underlying their slow movements. When Arthur pulled away, Merlin chased his lips, but found only air.

“Food first. We’ll continue later.” Arthur whispered in an amused tone. Merlin had to bite his inner lip to keep himself from moaning at the thought of what continuing this meant. Arthur moved around Merlin and made for the door. Merlin followed him, still slightly dazed from the kiss. Just before the door shut, Arthur’s foot jammed the door.

Did you grab your keys?

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Merlin fic and my first fic posted on here! I’m preparing to do a project talking about AO3’s classification system so it seemed like the perfect excuse to post a fic on here... I haven’t written fan fiction in years so any comments or feedback would be greatly appreciated!
> 
> Side note: this is based on me getting locked out of my apartment today when it was 39 degrees outside and I was in my pajamas. If only I had found myself an Arthur to keep me warm ;)


End file.
